「農家」概念の再検討 : 小経営的生産様式としての日本農業

The aim of this paper is to contribute to the discussions on who are the main actors in
Japanese agriculture by examining the concept of "nouka" (farm household) as a unit of
agriculture used for purposes of analysis. Japanese agriculture is still characterized as based
on family farming，not only by Marxian economists，but by neo-classical economists as well.
Both insist that family farming is doomed to disappear. This paper will first examine this
belief based on the concepts introduced in Farm Family Business by Ruth Gasson and
Andrew Errington (CAB International，1993). In this study，Gasson and Errington
conclude that 'family farming is far more resilient than previously supposed.' Second，two
concepts，family and household，will be compared in light of the debate over which is superior
as a basic unit in analyzing Japanese agriculture. The answer is that the household，because
of its function of pooling income，which in turn enables household members to survive and
farm income to stabilize，acts as the critical strategic unit. Third，the land tenure system in
Japan is examined by identifying the main actors in the modern history of farming. The
conclusion is that the peasant proprietorship system established in the Edo era still
determines the agricultural structure in Japan. Lastly，this paper introduces the concept of
"small-scaleoperation，" and identifies farming activities as a sub-concept of farm household
in order to articulate that farming income as well as non-farm income are included as
Japanese farm household income.